


Hurt

by demigodishlymagical



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Angst, Annabeth Chase - Freeform, Canon Universe, Dark Annabeth, Dark Percy, F/M, PTSD, Post-Tartarus (Percy Jackson), engaged annabeth, percabeth, percabeth break up, percy jackson - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-08
Updated: 2020-03-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:55:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23072056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/demigodishlymagical/pseuds/demigodishlymagical
Summary: Annabeth Chase is getting married.In less than a month she’ll be Mrs. Annabeth Hartford. Gone will be the daughter of Athena, the Hero of Olympus, the Architect of the Gods. She’ll simply be an up and coming architect, an Ivy League graduate, and the wife to a mortal man. She’ll be normal. Everything she’s ever wanted is so close to her reach. In exactly twenty-eight days she’ll truly be free from her past life.So then why isn't she happy?
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Original Character(s), Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson
Comments: 7
Kudos: 101





	Hurt

**Author's Note:**

> tw//ptsd & mentions of past abuse

Annabeth Chase is getting married.

In less than a month she’ll be Mrs. Annabeth Hartford. Gone will be the daughter of Athena, the Hero of Olympus, the Architect of the Gods. She’ll simply be an up and coming architect, an Ivy League graduate, the wife to a _normal_ man.

She’ll be _normal_.

Everything she’s ever wanted is so close to her reach. In exactly twenty-eight days she’ll truly be free from her past life.

So then why isn't she happy?

* * *

“Are you sure you only want your dad, Susan, and the boys at the wedding?” Maddox asked. This was the one thing he kept coming back to, the guest list. His family was huge, what was even bigger was the list of friends, colleagues, and associates he had sent invites to.

He’d made a joke about all wine glass sets they were sure to get when Annabeth pointed out just how many people were on that list.

On the other hand, Annabeth’s list comprised of six people. Her dad, stepmother, half-brothers, her cousin Magnus, and her best friend from college. Even her bridal party consisted of Maddox’s guests.

She nodded, “I’m sure.”

“You spent nearly your entire life in New York, and there’s no one you want invite from there? It isn’t too late to send out a couple last minute invitations.”

“It’d be an inconvenience.”

“The wedding venue is _in_ New York, Annabeth. If anything, it’s more of an inconvenience to my guests.”

The New York wedding had been his idea. His mother owned a house in upstate New York that also doubled as a wedding venue, something she had insisted they take advantage of. But Annabeth didn’t bother pointing this out to him.

“The people that are most important to me will be there.” She smiled.

Except for every single person she’d spent years of her life fiercely protecting and standing by.

But she hasn’t spoken to them in years. They wouldn’t want to be there.

* * *

Annabeth arrives in New York the week before the wedding.

Every step she takes in the city is painful. This used to be _her_ city. She used to run around it with her best friends, boldly fighting to protect it.

Her _new_ best friend, Kennedy, insists that they go explore. She’d never been to New York before.

So Annabeth shows her the best coffee place, teaches her how to use the subway system, takes her to Times Square, orders her first street dog, and does practically every New York thing with her that she could think of.

Eventually Kennedy calls it a night. It’s barely nine and the city is just starting to come alive, but she’d flown straight from Paris to New York to meet Annabeth. So Annabeth walks her back to their absurdly fancy hotel. It was the kind she used make fun of when she saw ritzy people going in and out with their long fur coats and snobby looks.

Apparently her soon to be father-in-law owns it, so she and Kennedy both get free rooms.

As much as it hurts, being back in New York felt like a breath of fresh air, and this could be the last time she’s alone here, so she heads back downstairs. As she leaves, the doorman eyes her suspiciously, she’s dressed in a hoodie and jeans and she realizes she’s one of the only women in there who doesn’t have a man around her arm.

Defiantly, she walks out.

By eleven all the true New York attractions, not the tourist hotspots are closed, and she considers heading back until she finds a tiny book shop with a café still open. She could use some coffee.

 _This hadn’t been here before_ , she notes as she heads inside.

Aside from the rows of shelves stacked with books, the place is empty and for a moment she worries that the store was already closed, and they’d forgotten to lock up.

Until she hears the thud of something falling to the floor and an all too familiar voice, “Annabeth?”

When she turns around and sees him, Annabeth feels like she can’t breathe. Not in the romantic, you stole my breath away kind of way, but she literally feels like someone is strangling her. And she’s not sure if she wants to hug him, throw something at him, or cry because she misses him so much but every wound she worked so hard at closing has suddenly burst back open.

“Percy,” she whispers.

He stays frozen in place, books still on the floor, and she stays frozen in place, hand covering her engagement ring.

“Annabeth,” he says again. This time in a whisper that tugs at the pit of her stomach.

“I should leave.”

“No,” he answers too fast, “Stay.”

Her eyes flicker in all different directions to look at the store, hoping to avoid eye contact with him. Because gods, she misses his eyes. She can’t look at the color green anymore, can’t look at the ocean, without feeling like she’s about to fall apart. How is she supposed to look at his eyes?

“This is new.” She says softly.

“Mom owns it. I help her out.”

And then Annabeth breaks.

Annabeth Chase has been fighting monsters since she was seven, she held up the sky, fought the titan lord Kronos, recovered the Athena Parthenos, and survived Tartarus all before she was eighteen. But losing Percy Jackson was the hardest thing she’d ever been through.

She lost Percy. But she also lost everyone she ever cared about, Chiron, Camp Half Blood, all of her friends, and the closest thing she’d ever had to a mother.

“Annabeth,” Percy steps forward to take her hand, but Annabeth flinches at his touch.

“I need to leave.”

“We could talk.” He says.

“No.”

“We’re not kids anymore, Annabeth.”

They were never kids though. Because what they did to each other was something kids would have _never_ done. They hurt each other in ways Annabeth hadn’t even known possible. If they were like that as teenagers, what would they do to destroy each other now?

“You scare me.”

Percy's face twisted, “I know. Me too.”

“I hurt you.”

“ _Tartarus_ hurt _us_ , Annabeth.”

“I miss you.”

“And I really fucking miss you.”

“Do you hate me?” Annabeth’s voice cracked.

“I hate what we did to each other. I hate that you left. But I could never hate you.”

“I hated you,” Annabeth finally met his eyes, “I hated you for so long. You shouldn’t have followed me into Tartarus, you should have let me die, Percy.”

“I’m sorry.”

“If we could redo it would you change anything?”

“ _Never_.”

Tears streamed down Annabeth’s face, “I hate you.”

“I know.”

“I love you too.”

“I know.”

“I wish I never met you.” Annabeth hiccupped.

“Me too.” Percy gave her a bitter smile, “But you’re still the best thing that ever happened to me.”

“I know.” Annabeth echoed.

She’s what kept him alive all those years, but in a cruel twist of fate they had been each other’s demise.

“I never thought I’d see you again-”

Annabeth cut him off, “I need to leave.”

Percy gave her a pained expression, before saying, “I’ll let you go.”

And he did.

* * *

Two nights before the wedding Annabeth found herself standing outside of the book shop. She should be upstate by now, she told Maddox she already was. But she’d missed her flight because instead of giving the cab driver the address to the La Guardia she pointed him in the direction of Sally’s shop and had been standing outside it since.

She shouldn't do this. There was a reason they broke up, she reminded herself. It was because they just kept hurting each other and they both loved the other too much to keep up this sick act. They had to stop it before they really messed each other up.

So she really shouldn't have done it, but she burst in there, found Percy, and fell into him.

Gods, she missed him so much.

Percy gave her a confused look, before kissing her back just as fiercely. Then he locked up the store and let Annabeth take the lead.

Annabeth found herself back at The Hartford Hotel, the doorman gave another disapproving look to her as she dragged Percy behind her, and then made her way to the front desk where she demanded a room. Because she had that kind of power now.

“Annabeth,” Percy whispered desperately into her ear when they got in the elevator.

“Shut up.”

For a moment he looked fearful, before he pushed it away, and pressed a soft kiss against her lips.

When they finally find their room, Annabeth throws her purse onto the floor and shoves Percy against the wall.

“Annabeth?”

“Yes?” she looks up at him.

“I’m not going to hurt you.”

“I know,” she kissed his chin, “I won’t hurt you either.”

And the scene becomes achingly familiar. They’ve been in this exact position before, hungry for each other and entirely vulnerable.

“I believe you,” he says as she pulls his shirt off.

Annabeth stumbles to turn off the lights, worried that she’ll see his skin raw with scratches or fresh bruises, physical, aching reminders that she hurt him. Or that she’ll look down at herself to find bruises decorating her own body.

“No.” Percy flips them back on and holds out their arms for her to see. “We’re okay.”

She nods.

“Look at me.”

And she does.

“We’re okay,” he repeats, as he begins unzipping her dress.

“We’re okay,” she echoes, still in a lustful daze.

Her fingers trace his back. Her nails are cut shorter than they’d been before. She can’t leave red, hot scars anymore. She presses a kiss to his shoulder, to a place she’d once scratched so deeply it drew blood and had left a tiny scar. At the same time Percy is gently playing with her hair, not tugging at it in frustration.

Percy pauses for a moment and looks her in the eyes, “Are you sure you want this?”

“Yes.” She says firmly and tugs him to the bed.

“Okay,” his hands are roaming her body.

“I love you.” She tells him.

“I love you.” Percy says, his voice much lower than it had been seven years ago.

This is the last thing Annabeth processes before she bursts into color.

* * *

Annabeth wakes up to an empty room.

Percy is gone and in his place is a note written on the the complimentary notepad that simply reads, _Congratulations_.

Annabeth instinctively looked down at her left hand, and a hot flush storms her body as her engagement ring sparkles up at her. She’d kept it on.

Then she remembers that she’s getting married tomorrow.

She didn’t tell Percy.

She cheated on Maddox.

_She didn’t tell Percy._

At what point did he notice the ring? When did he realize what it meant?

She screwed up.

She hurt him, _again_.

* * *

The whole ceremony is a daze, but she’d said those two words and had officially become Mrs. Maddox Hartford.

 _This is what she wanted_ , she reminded herself, _Maddox was the one_.

Maddox was the first guy she’d kissed since Percy. The first guy who’d told her he loved her since Percy. He was her first _everything_ since Percy. So yes, Annabeth did fall for the first man who’d bothered to look in her direction. She’d heard the words, “Will anyone really love you as much as Percy did?” too often to let go of an opportunity to prove those voices, including her own, wrong.

And Annabeth really did love Maddox. He bought her flowers, made her laugh, ensured anything she could possibly want was within her grasp. Being with him was the closest Annabeth had felt to feeling whole since she and Percy broke up.

But there were still pieces missing from her. She’d realized that last night.

She had been asking herself the wrong question, it wasn’t _Will anyone love me as much as Percy did?_ It was _Will I love anyone as much as I loved Percy?_

And the answer to that question was no.

But some things aren’t meant to be, some people were better off far apart than together.

So Annabeth Hartford figures that she’ll never really be whole again, but it's better that way.

**Author's Note:**

> I know I should be working on As We Fell Apart but I couldn't get this idea out of my head and inspiration struck. Next chapter of AWFA will hopefully be posted soon! 
> 
> I feel like I have to say this, I would never support a relationship like this. In this situation, they're not bad people, just messed up, but abuse is wrong regardless. Hence, why they aren't together in the end even if they do truly love each other.
> 
> This was kinda dark and heavy, but I hope you still enjoyed reading it.
> 
> -demigodishlymagical


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